Tilt and shift lenses

phil collins

phil collins

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I have just been reading my latest copy of photoplus and in there is an article about landscape togs and they are going on about tilt and shift lenses and there ability to help reduce distortion etc...........so my question is what are they going on about and can someone explain these in plain english? :thinking::shrug:

Thanks, I feel a bit dim but there you go!!
 
The technique has been around since the very early days of the large format camera where the front glass element could be moved independently of the other to create a sweet spot of focus. The technology has since then been made available for 35 mm cameras where a lens has an element in the front that moves independently of the other. The lens is frequently used in architectural photography to correct distortion, which rather than create sweet spots of focus keeps an entire frame in focus but minimizes the effects of convergence. Other photographers have popularized the lens by using it in portrait photography, a technique which has been compelling as the sweet spot of focus draws the viewer in immediately. Walter Iooss Jr. of Sports Illustrated, Vincent Laforet and many other photographers have images using this lens/technique on their respective websites.

Click here for Wikipedia
 
I would question how effective these really are in 35mm (would be marginally better suited to DX digital due to smaller image circle required). I have used a 5x4 camara for 20 odd years and have always bought lenses with large image circles to allow the greatest amount of lens movement. Even here there are severe restictions and any 35mm versions I have seen are very expensive with minimal movement. (by comparison) They are ok for moving the plane of focus but it's a huge price to pay for a few minutes in photoshop.
 
TS or PC lenses are usefull for straightening distortion in architectural images..
 
Anima Templi said:
...... They are ok for moving the plane of focus but it's a huge price to pay for a few minutes in photoshop.
Click to expand...

Whilst I'll concede that my TS-E24 is not the sharpest of lenses until it's down past f/5.6, Photoshop cannot get near the results the lens will produce. There are other software packages out there that are more specialised in this area but it puts you back in the spending game.

A carefully manipulated 10-22 can produce results that may get closer than a PS corrected image (especially on a crop body) but the image corners will experience a large fall off in IQ.

Here's a link to a site with plenty of TS info and sample shots.

http://hame.ca/tiltshift.htm

Bob
 
Yes they are capable of some very creative techniques however they remain a high price to pay for something that only half does the job.

True control over focus and perspective relies on movement of the rear standard (Film plane) independantly of and as well as the front standard (lens plane) and application (or de application) of the Scheimpflug rule and this is simply not possible with TS/PS lenses.

I'm not trying to de cry their use just make people aware that sometimes a cheaper more effective alternative is to buy a second hand 5x4 (great value) and scan the results, if you want or have a need for true TS/PC expression.
 
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